[ ♪ theme music ♪ ] >> eliot: welcome back to "viewpoint's" special coverage of hurricane sandy and it's aftermath over the last few days. the nation has seen moments of horror and devastation. a brutal act of nature leaving behind a trail of damage and heartbreak. here is a small sampling of some of the tragedy and destruction of hurricane sandy. >> this storm showed even the most prepared that they weren't prepared enough. a record storm surge almost 14 feet flooded lower manhattan. >> amazing. cars were completely destroyed. they were submerged underwater. i'm floored by what happened. >> i've lived before hurricanes. i've never seen anything like this. >> new york university medical one of the most respected

teaching hospitals in new york city found itself in crisis at the height of the storm. flooded with up to 12 feet of water. it lost power chewing it's back up generator. >> ambulances lined up through the night after nyu hospital here in manhattan was plunged into darkness with generators failing. hundreds of patients were evacuated to other facilities. 20 of them babies. >> doctors nurses, policemen firemen trying to get 200 people out of the hospital. >> julia, pregnant and in labor had to be carried down several flights of stairs. >> they took her off the bed got her onand proceeded to slide her really slowly down eight flights of stairs. >> no borough was spared. from this oil tanker to a beach community in queens. this is breezy point shortly after the the inferno started at 11:00 p.m. last night. blocks of homes engulfed in

flames. firefighters hauled hoses through flooded streets. 200 firefighters from called into battle as wind-whipped flames jumped from house to house. >> flames 50 feet in the air taking everything out. there was no stopping it. >> it was very upsetting for all of us. if anybody is out there thinking of us, say your prayers for us. that's what you can do. >> at a con ed power plant a spark, a transformer explosion and a massive fireball. [ explosion ] >> what's going on? what the hell is this! [ yelling ] >> this is an area that experienced severe damage. it looks like a doll house. literally the front of this chelsey building ripped right

off. mayor bloomberg said, in fact the crane structures at all these sites have been examined. they had been tied down. they should be safe given what we know about the winds, but as you report, 90 mph for these winds, there are big concerns for construction sites like that as well. >> more breaking news, look at these pictures with me. this is a partial crane collapse in new york city. >> workers are taking down the board that was supposed to keep water out of subway stations and loading sandbags back on the trucks. >> the mta last night faced a disaster more than they have faced in this century. >> everything covered in sludge. >> falling trees crashing on to roads and into houses.

>> north salem new york, where two boys were playing and watching tv in their family room when this 100-foot oak slammed into the foam. a scene repeated too many times across the country. these are viewer's pictures, trees across houses, across roads, and pulling down plenty of power lines. >> oh, my god. >> our tree! our tree! >> it hit your car. oh, my god. >> it hit my car. >> the car. >> unprecedented and unthinkable. that's what the new jersey governor chris christie is calling the damage from the super storm sandy that slammed his state. look along the jersey shore or what was. >> you're looking at pictures from the national guard the coast line houses buried in the sand, sand washed into homes at

least 100 yards from the normal high tide line. the jersey shore suffered from what governor chris christie described as you unthinkable devastation. >> i'm glad you see the picture because if you can't see it, you can't fully understand it. as you're going through it, i am not ashamed to say i'm overwhelmed. i feel so small against what we have to do to go forward here. >> now i got nothing--my husband, my son no nothing. it's all ruined down there. every ounce of it, ruined. nothing, nothing! nothing. nothing. it's a shame. >> yep. >> it's a shame. >> cenk: with the latest on the aftermath of hurricane sandy i'm joined once again by brandi hitt in lower manhattan. these pictures are heartrending. what can you tell us is happening? >> eliot, it's very heartbreaking to look at the devastation. some of the neighborhoods have

been completely wiped out. here on the southern end of manhattan we have a little bit of good news to report. the power is slowly coming on. not fully but we're starting to see the lights come back. there are areas without power. including bellevue hospital. there are evacuations under way there. that hospital has been without power since the hurricane struck, but the issue has been their generators. they've had back-up generators, but the power has not been enough. right now the national guard is going in and helping to pull those people out. when it comes to the subway system, another good news for new yorkers. there will be limited subway service starting tomorrow morning as well, eliot. >> eliot: that certainly is good news. something that will be in discussion at some point down the road are the hospitals and whether the hospitals need a substantial infusion of back up energy, evacuating women who are in labor should not happen no matter what the cataclysm is. that will bring a lot of attention.

what is going on in new jersey. we spoke with the mayor of tomorrow's river before. he was talking about gas leakage. what do you know about that? that is something that continues to create dangerous situations. >> oheroh definitely. a lot of people are worried about the aftermath. our crews have been down there on the coastal areas of new jersey. you can hear the hissing from the natural gas eliot. it's very, very scary. obviously this morning it sparked several fires after the homes come down or get swept away, then you have natural gas lines that are open. they're worried about more explosions happening throughout the coming days. a lot of people have been saying they hear the hissing and smelling the gas smell. then you look at the homes that are still underwater in new jersey. there are thousands of people trapped in different areas in hoboken they're going door to door and it could be days before you know the truly horrible.

>> eliot: it will take weeks months years to rebuild these towns. i want to discuss the tunnels. when they're flooded, the sludge that covers the rails, how long do the folks at mta, if they've told you predict to begin to scrape that away so we can once again connect the five boroughs of the city. >> it will likely be a couple more days, at least the people we've been speaking with, early on they didn't know when, and we heard towards the end of the week. we have heard that some of the tunnels have reopened, not all of the subways especially down here in lower manhattan where they saw so much water. the subway system likely won't be fully operational until the weekend. when it comes to pumping they've got the army corp of engineers out there and they're pumping

out the water that still is in existence in some of these tunnels. they're hoping within the next couple of days, eliot. >> eliot: brandi maybe it's premature thinking about this, but is it they say if we built x, y z structure we can prevent the water getting into the tunnels. is there an easy an answer or maybe not oh easy answer. this is not just something that is science fiction. we have to deal with it. anything that anybody has mentioned. >> we keep hearing everybody talk about it. we're going to come back and learn from this and build something stronger arrested better. you hear the politicians say that now after this situation that we've had. i have not heard one specific thing like this is what we're going to do. this is how much it's going to cost. homeland security secretary quoteds a saying, this could be the most expensive recovery in

history. hurricane katrina cost $106 billion. that's how much it cost to recover from that hurricane. this is going to surpass that. people are going to be thinking what can we do better so we don't have these horrible situations happen, and spending all this money that america will have to spend to recover from it it. >> eliot: the ex-spans and swath from new jersey, pennsylvania upwards, the devastation is huge. the economic toll, the cost of human life enormous, and awful to see. brandi hitt, thank you for joining us tonight. >> eliot: highlighting the emergency management agency. does mitt romney still

>> eliot: natural disasters can i an unpleasant but strong reminder of the benefits and importance of a strong federal government. just don't tell the republicans. or more specifically mitt romney. here is romney during the g.o.p. primary debates in june of last year. >> fema is about to run out of money, and some people say it's on a case by case basis. how do you deal with something like that? >> absolutely. every time you have an occasion that takes something from the federal government and send it back to the states, that's the right direction. and if you can go any further and send it back to the private sector that's even better.

we cannot afford to do those things without jeopardizing the future for our kids. it is simply immoral in my view. >> eliot: to discuss the federal response to the storm and the on the upcoming elections we welcome minnesota congressman and co-chair of the congressional progressive caucus representative keith ellison. thank you for joining us. >> thank you for inviting me. >> eliot: i don't understand. maybe you can shed light. mitt romney wants to privatize fema? take it back to the states and say no federal role here? how do you understand what the republican parties want to do here. >> well, do think when they can devolve government or privatize it, they try to do that. we've seen that in disaster relief. they completely ignored fema during the bush administration, and we saw the catastrophic results of that. i believe him when he says it, and i believe it will lead to a

much more difficult situation for people facing tornado hurricane, flood all kinds of things, it's a bad way to go. >> eliot: in the romney-ryan budget paul ryan's budget in particular they're slashing fema. are we missing something here? >> no, we should take them at their word. they mean it when they say it. i would argue and many americans agree, the disaster relief is a core function of government. it's a basic hallmark of what governments do, help people when they're in most dire straits. they're saying they don't want any part of that. >> eliot: i could not agree with you more. 99.9% of the american public agrees with you, but it's part of their litany that, gee we don't trust government and we don't want it to get in the way until people wake up and see how important it is. that's why of course mitt romney has backtracked and flip flopped as he has on every other issue

on the moment of crisis. but it is a core piece of paul ryan's budget and they want to slash the protection the get from the federal government. >> you have to help one way or another. if it means taking it out of fema, they'll do that. but the american people better pay close attention because in a few days we'll have a decision point. do we want fema supported when the tornadoes and hurricanes come, or do we want to make sure that the richest people have more money. >> eliot: i hate to put this tragedy in the context of politics, but the moment we have presidential elections just a few days away, it seems to me that the discussion about fema, and the things you've said, what we as members of the community think government should do, catch the divide of how romney sees government and how most of

us see government. has sandy in a way made that divide more significant for the american public? made it more vivid for the american voter? >> sandy has cast a people in sharp relief. on one hand, tax cuts for the wealthiest. on the other hand, disaster relief for you and your family when you need it. very clear. i want to tell you that my heart goes out to the people in new york and up and down the atlantic seaboard. i don't doubt that the republicans care about our fellow americans too. but it's not just a matter of private charity. government has to be a part of this. government has to play an important role, and i think that this is a decision point. you know because people might say it's not right to make politics out of this, but let's face it, we're making a political decision in a few days and this is exhibit-a in

which way this should go in my mind. >> eliot: it's about the debate in the role of government. >> right. >> eliot: this is what we should be doing, in context of this that frames what the are. as you pointed out private charity cannot deal with the enormous arm of suffering nor can charity build the infrastructure that we need to prevent it, whether it's a levy or subway system, and the republicans will be cutting left right and center. >> left, right and center. in fact, we want to do more infrastructure investment than we've done already, but they've stood in the way of that. we need vital infrastructure investment. not only will it put people back to work, but it will save lives. i want you to know that i do identify with the people of new york right now. five years ago we had a bridge fall into the mississippi river in the midwest, so infrastructure investment is a public safety issue as well as a

jobs issue. >> eliot: congressman, you're so right. when that bridge collapsed there was an outpouring of studies,er that highlighted our antiquated our infrastructure was, urban planners what, guys, this is systemic of a deeper problem. what we're seeing in new york is systemic of our failure to be prepare and invest which goes to the ideology that has gripped our government for 30 years to do less and less and less that never understand the public benefits from the public investments you've been pushing. >> we've been pushing the national infrastructure bank bill to make sure that new york, and you know, communities all over the country have the infrastructure that we need to meet 21st century threats. also, build for a more productive, better functioning economy. at the end of the day you cannot do the cheapskate thing

on infrastructure because mother nature has a way of reminding you of how important these investments are. >> eliot: the power of water is something that we forget no matter what we build, it will beat us back when it wants to get through. it is just a scary moment and talktalk presidential race, we're just a couple of days away. how do you see things? >> well, you know, i think it's a nail biter, but the president looks like he has this thing well in hand. i think the outright falsehoods that romney-ryan has been telling about the auto industry have been exposed, and people know who is on the side of auto workers, and who is standing opposed to them no matter what kind of stories they're trying to make up for ohioans. i think that lie is going to hurt the romney-ryan ticket. there is no doubt we've got to work to the end. i don't want anybody out there

on our side thinking that we can let up. we got no room for comfort, and if there is one more door you can knock or one more call you can make, you better make it. >> eliot: congressman, you're exactly right. the auto ad they were running in ohio was so the bridge too far. when major newspapers are saying no, mitt romney is lying i think his credibility finally got punctures. >> you know, the guy will say anything. i mean, he was pro-choice, and then pro-life. he was pro healthcare, now he's against it. this is the one guy, i mean when they said that thing about the etch-a-sketch move boy, have we seen that. have you seen such a radical departure to the middle. he runs to the far right, then the middle, and he tries to recreate himself every moment. but the american people are smart, and we do not have amnesia. >> eliot: i hope people pick up on it and say we can't vote for

a president who is lacking in core values and is not tethered at all to core principles. but the editorials endorsing mitt romney say he's showing the flexibility that he needs to negotiate. there is a difference between flexibility and complete absence of value structure. this is what troubles me, that many are falling for it. >> all politics are local. you look at an editorial like the "des moines register," and i don't want to impugn anybody's integrity, but i'll only say this. it has gotten him a lot of attention. sometimes it's not about right or wrong but sensation. now of course those folks will have to be, you know, they'll have to account for their own consciences after some of the editorials that i've seen, but at the end of the day some folks want to zig when others are zagging. >> eliot: i'm going to make a bold prediction. i think you're going to be re-elected by a landslide come

tuesday. >> i hope you're right. >> eliot: congressman ellison, thank you for joining us. >> thank you eliot. >> eliot: more on sandy and the

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so we gotta go! we're going to go to red lobster. yep. [ male announcer ] try our 15 under $15 menu and sea food differently! >> eliot: a natural disaster can up end everything, including politics. yesterday, mitt romney turned a planned campaign event in ohio in into an improvised food drive. unfortunately, the red cross has a rule against taking individual donations such as food and clothing. they need blood donations, and money. the governor corrected that, somewhat in remarks he kept non-political. >> romney: and so please, if you have an extra dollar or two send them along keep the people who are in harm's way who have been in harm's way who have been damaged either personally or through their property keep them in your hearts and prayers.

>> so hopefully we'll do what we always do as americans. working together along party lines. we're all better off when everything is in the deal together. we're all working together. >> eliot: he did say along party lines. how is all this supposedly political politics playing with the voters? let's bring in staff reporter from mother jones andy kroll and national political reporter david catanese. andy, what do you think, is this a game pretending not to be political when everyone, in fact, is political? >> well, obama campaign and romney campaign as well as joe biden item you himself, they have to tone down the rhetoric. they can't bare their teeth and bring out the barbs that they have been for how long this

political campaign has been going on. you also had romney surrogates with full throated attacks on the president and on democrats today. so, you know, it was a very short window when the political--the politicking the campaign you trail rhetoric was toned down and we're seeing it come back already. >> eliot: look, everything that these individuals do, and rightly so between now and tuesday, is meant to project an image to the public saying vote vote for me as president or vice president because i have the values and judgments that you need in the oval office. i don't think there is anything wrong with that, but david one of the interesting dances over the past couple of days is chris christie and the president. was this a marriage of convenience or is there interest there that brings these individuals together there. >> non-politics and disaster is the best type of politics. look at those images out of new jersey with chris christie

and barack obama, it's a win-win for both of these guys. chris christie, he's brusque he's mean. i had someone tell me today that they don't like chris christie, a schoolteacher, but they loved what he was saying today getting the politics out of it. the same thing with president obama. the one thing that he needed was a moment to look presidential, and you know, terrible as this storm is, people are viewing it as so. he is the president in a tragedy. he's working with a republican governor a high profile republican governor, who made the pitch for his opponent at the republican national convention. so this, i think there is no question that right now this benefits the president. if there is a political lens to look through i think it benefits the president. it's hard to see how mitt romney gains much from this stalled this break in the action. >> eliot: david, i could not agree more. i think this is exactly what the

president wanted. he looks presidential. he works across party lines. he gets to say to the public, i'm dealing with human concerns, human emotions, the tragedy that mother nature has thrust upon us i'm doing what public interest requires. andy explain to me chris christie's analysis. wait a moment. when romney is making it a tighter race than anybody thought he would you chris christie you're pulling the rug out from under him where he didn't even mention romney's name. explain this from chris christie. >> the only thing that he cares about is the well-being of the people of his state. his state is recovering from this horrible disaster that has flooded and wiped out huge swaths of new jersey. i can't imagine chris christie,

who tends to wear his heart on his sleeve and tends to tell us what he thinks in no uncertain terms has any ulterior political motive has in his mind, how is this going to play out in the republican base or those in the eyes of the campaign. chris christie said he could not thank president obama enough. the approval is through the roof. eight in ten people approve. two-thirds of romney supporters approve. chris christie, he has to work with the president. he has been willing to work with the president. he wants what is best for his people, and so does the president from all that we've heard. this plays in politically as dave said, this plays into president obama's hands, if you will. he looks more presidential. he has done an incredible job. chris christie, the fact that he's not only a republican governor, but a romney surrogate, a romney spokesman only amplifies how much this

makes the president look better. >> eliot: look guys, i think that's exactly right. i think chris christie and president obama big winners here. mitt romney gnashing his teeth but folks know what needs to be done. i don't want to impugn him. he's just in a tough bind right now. i want to pivot if we might. i want to talk about something that we don't talk often enough which is the united states senate races. some of the races that have been close, in particular virginia, missouri. which way do you think the senate ends up going. >> the two that you cited virginia and missouri, i see them trending towards the democrats. and mc mccatskill drew the best opponent possible in todd akin. she's going to survive in a single digit victory. i don't think much is going to change with the united states senate. i think the republicans will net some seats. i think the democrats will win back massachusetts.

i think they'll probably get maine and maybe one other indiana, where richard murdoch made those comments about rape and abortion. he's in big trouble in a state that should be saved. i think the senate should be a wash. republicans get two or three. the dems get two or three. bottom line it looks like harry reid will be the majority leader and the republicans will have to look for another cycle to cry to wrest back control of the chamber. >> eliot: i don't think they'll have as many available seats as they hoped to pick up. andy, i don't know if you're following this carefully nebraska nobody thought he had a chance. is that one tightening up? i've been getting e-mails from bob kerry. i sat next to him on an airplane a couple of weeks ago. he said he's now within one or two points. is that a possible come-from-behind victory for the

democrats? >> bob kerry has absolutely been closing the gap. he, like claire mccaskill has been left for death a month or two or three ago. but he has pulled it close. he has come within striking distance of his republican opponent, who i should say is backed by a significant amount of outside money because the big super pacs, the big non-profits they have seen nebraska as a state where they can flip it from democratic to republican. bob kerry, amazingly has stormed back here at the end and then nebraska has gone from being sort of a snooze fest to a nail biter just in the last two or three weeks here. you know, i don't think anybody can say for certain that republicans have locked it up. >> eliot: i would love to see bob kerry pull that one out. he was an amazing public servant, and he would say stuff that would make you cock your head and say, what did he just

say? a navy seal, and if he could come to new york and drink all the cappuccino, and then go back to nebraska. that's basically what happened. andy kroll and david catanese. thank you for thomas jefferson said that a successful democracy depended on an informed electorate. our country's future depends on you. to help you make informed decisions, watch current tv's only on current tv. take the time to learn about the issues. don't just vote, vote smart.

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>> there has been a noticeable climate silence this election cycle, yet the havoc wrought by hurricane sandy stands as a destructivive reminder that our cities are vulnerable to sea levels that are continually rising at the planet warms and glaciers melt. with me now is chris mooney, producer of climate desk live and author of "the republican brain: the science of why they deny science and reality." and dr. reese halter, conservation biologist and author of "the insatiable beetle

beetle" many thanks for joining us now. what about all the climate things happening. >> i chalk that up to matters of personalities and liberals are more open to new information and conservatives keep their existing values. in relation to sandy what you're going to see are the eyes really opened especially for the democrats and the independents, this is not our grandfather's weather. i think there is going to be working down on on the denial. >> eliot: not a word been climate change. it has not been on the public agenda, why is that? do you think sandy will change

that? >> it has to change that. the economy is a wholly owned subsidiary of the environment get it? sandy is in the house. we've had two 100-year events back-to-back. irene, sandy it could be $50 billion. you know we've wasted a lot of time here. now we've got to prepare and plan. and it turns out it's a four letter dirt word--jobs. come on. >> eliot: well you're making a powerful economic argument. the sheer cost of these storms is going to force us to pay attention. that has not yet worked. you've seen, and this goes back to chris' point a doubling down, the challenge of the very science of climate change. let me ask you this, does mitt romney believe in global warming, and does mitt romney believes the government needs to do something about it? everything you've read about it,

seen him say and heard him say over the years. >> there is a lot of back and forth. that's not the only issue that that's the case for mitt romney. but he gave a written answer to a group called science debate. in there he admitted that science tests think that humans are influencing climate change but he said he's not sure there is a consensus about the extent. that's not true. scientists think that it's mostly caused by greenhouse gas emissions. i think the romney administration, although we did not get that debate question, i think you would get a lot like the george w. bush administration where they nod at the problem they say they'll study it but action is not made. >> eliot: reese, we come back to you. in the first term of president obama. there was a nod. we have the waxman markie bill which was a thoughtful step forward and then silence over the next couple of years.

even if president obama is re-elected and i think he will be will he put this back on the agenda, and if he does, what should the centerpiece be in the tester of climate change. >> it's got to be the center of his platform because we've wasted so much time. look there is no debate. i've been working it for a quarter of a century in the climate change arena. and anybody in our arena will tell you that we're not into change we're into rapid change. so now what we've got to do is we got to protect all of our cities whether it's the coastal cities whether it's building levies whether its getting--we've got to get into a situation here, eliot where our citizens are safe. there is a terrific amount of misinformation. like for instance the antarctic is gaining ice. that is utter flummery. the anti-arctic is losing

190 million tons of ice a day. if you put that in terms of blue whales, the largest living mammalian earth 125 tons. that's 1 million blue whales of water a day. we're in trouble man. >> eliot: you said something that is critically important for folks to focus on. there is not just change there but change at an accelerating race. if that means that the seas are going to be rising, they've risen a foot over the last 50 years. am i off base in that data? >> yes yes yes and look, we had the brain power in america. our best friend is innovation. we're all wired into smart phones ipads, where do you think that came from, scientists. and mix that with entrepreneurs and engineers, we can tackle this thing but we can't waste any more time.

>> eliot: chris, what is the answer? carbon tax or something approaching waxman markie bill. write for us the second term of the obama administration to confront this so we don't have sandy on steroids three years from now. >> first i think we need much stronger adaptation measures. we knew about the vulnerable of new york and we knew the vulnerable of cities like tampa. why are we not protecting these cities. climate is making it worse. you need a climate policy and something with a dividend so not only do you cap or fax or tax or fee but you give to citizens in terms of a check to each of them. >> is this carbon taxes? there are these carbon taxes where you return the cash to citizens and it's a way to change behavior. >> look, eliot we cleaned up the late states with acid rain. just lastly, the ocean provides

two terrawatts of energy. we use one terrawatt globally for energy. and we have the technology. there are farms in portugal and spain and australia and the u.k. where we got to jump all over this. there are jobs for our children, and this is innovation. this is a no-brainer. let's run with it. >> eliot: some how there is something affirmative and optimistic listening to you guys. it sounds like there are answers. let's hope the politicians think there are as they cross that line. chris mooney and dr. reese halter. thank you for your time tonight. >> thanks. >> eliot: at the top of the hour join jennifer granholm in "the war room" for swing state polls with her guest michael tasmaste of the daily beast. coming the one time it's okay for you to miss my show is if that's the

only time you can get to a polling place. make sure that voting is your highest priority on election day. besides, you can always dvr my show. you really cant' dvr the future of the country. to help you make informed decisions, watch current tv's politically direct lineup. only on current tv. so vote and vote smart.

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>> eliot: hurricane sandy has undoubtedly become part of the presidential election, and with it unfortunately has come brazen partisan politicsation. >> typically people don't blame the candidate any candidate for the storm itself. oh although one of these candidates did promise to lower the level of the ocean and obviously that didn't work. >> why they think that we conservatives would attack the

president of the united states at this terrible tragic time, it just shows what the left is and where it is coming from in this time. that he make politics out of everything, i wonder if they pray. >> eliot: don't trump joined the action yesterday. he'll buy the election by handing out billions of dollars. obama will be seen standing in water and rain like he's a real president. don't fall for it. wow. here with me now to discuss the political optics of the storm is tina dupuy syndicated calumnies, and boris epshteny. contributor of the daily caller and former communications aide to the mccain-palin campaign. welcome. >> this should be politicized. it's a political issue.

i mean, that's what we've been fighting about this entire time, is how we want the government to be in our lives or not be in our lives and what that struggle is. this is, this is politics. but that kind of stuff i mean-- >> eliot: tina, i could not agree with you more. you don't politicize the effort to save seniors and kids. but the fundamental underlying debate and i spoke about this earlier in the show, who built it o who rebuilt it as i rephrased it, boris to put the fun back in these. do you agree with what tina is saying? there is an underlying philosophical debate going on here that is made manifest and fundamental by this hurricane. >> the hurricane is important seven days before the election. we definitely have to evaluate how it impacts our view of what the government will do. i'm not going to say that fema

should not be involved. of course it should be. chris christie being attacked unjustly for it. there's no problem with fema being involved. there is no issue with the federal government stepping in and helping. when the government oversteps and overregulates that's what they're talking about. and to do it during a hurricane relief effort is the wrong time to do it. >> eliot: tina is right. this does frame the debates. you have donald trump does donald trump's tweets seem a little bit jarring? explain this to us. he's not a real president? >> donald trump is an entertaining. he's very good at branding and making a lot of money off it. he can say what he wants. he has the money to back him up. we have free speech. should anybody vote based on

those tweets? they should not. they should vote on the inability of barack obama to be the president, and the ability of mitt romney to do that. >> eliot: has he not made himself part of the fabric of the republican party. he has this big press announcement, $5 million for the president's college. >> he also said it was going to be the october surprise, and it ended up just being the october jumping the shark. >> eliot: doesn't he hurt the republican party. >> i think he hurts himself. he lives and dies by his own rhetoric and i think this thing bombed when he came out with it this $5 million bet and it keeps bombing every time he takes to the twitter. >> i will agree with that. he does hurt himself. but the bottom line, he's not out there to gain votes for mitt romney but to promote his own brand. right now we're talking about him, and he likes it. >> eliot: we're going to stop. we won't play into that game. let's talk about mitt romney for

a minute. this has been a tough 48 hours. he sees the president. he sees chris christie, the surrogate, praising the president to the skies. mitt romney can do little more than collecting cans of food to give to the shelter. good stuff to be applauded for but not the momentum that he wanted. how does he respond to this. >> he doesn't need to respond to this. look at the polls. they're moving in the republicans' favor. we talked about this beforehand, the general impact election, it goes to the challenger. in this election you see people who are disenchanted with the president. they're not going to be convinced in four years. they're not going to be convinced in one week. they're not going to be convinced by him doing his job. and chris christie working with him. this is the bipartisanship we want. >> is it true, late breakers

usually go against the incumbent incumbent, and why is boris' logic is wrong. >> the important thing to remember the blizzard of 1988. >> eliot: i don't know this one. >> the blizzard of 1888, the first time wall street shut down and it was the catalyst for building the subway system. you have teddy roosevelt in 1896 who came and gave the citizens of new york ice in the heatwave. we like our infrastructure. we like the government to--we pay a lot of for it. we pay a lot of money for our government to actually function and to do things, and we show in new york how to do government right. i think that is-- >> that's-- >> hold on for a second. i'm answering the question. when we look to government functioning on a level that

seems to be something that we agree with, we want our candidate to have three answers for every single question. that makes me very-- >> eliot: that's the most historical answer i've heard in are a long time. 1888. >> i thought you were going to have my back here. >> eliot: i'm with you. >> it died in new york city. and it will die again in new york city. >> eliot: what tina is saying is really deep. this isn't politicizing a storm. it is using it as something that is emblematic of what we expect and want from our government. john lindsay who didn't ploy the streets was voted out. mitt romney has not spoken to this need. how does he answer that. >> the polls have shown that the president has not made his case that he wants to turn around the economy. mitt romney has. he's leading and he will win. >> eliot: this election will turn on the jobs number on

friday. if unemployment rate jumps above eight does the president have a problem. >> i don't think the president has a president. i don't think it will be a landslide. it will be close but he will win. >> eliot: quickly. >> he's clear on that j if the unemployment rate jumps up, is that what romney needs. >> no, whether it's 7.7 7.8 the american public is convinceed that president obama has not done the job that he needs to do. mitt romney will step in. they won't care about those numbers. they're in the vicinity where they are. and the election has already been decided for mitt romney. >> eliot: i think the job numbers do matter, and i think the president has made his case over the last four years. tina dupuy and boris epshteny, contributor to the daily caller and former communication aide to the mccain-palin campaign.